Selling a house in a succession in Louisiana

Can heirs sell a house before the succession is opened?

Not completely, but they can start. Until a succession is opened and a judgment of possession is signed, the house is still in the name of the person who died, and a title company will not insure a sale from that name. What heirs can do first is gather papers, talk to a succession lawyer and decide what they want.

In Louisiana, the word for probate is succession. It is handled in the district court for the parish where the person lived: the 1st Judicial District Court in Shreveport for Caddo Parish, the 26th Judicial District Court for Bossier and Webster Parish, and the 42nd Judicial District Court for DeSoto Parish. We are a home buyer, not a law firm, so this page explains how things generally work. A Louisiana succession lawyer decides what applies to your family.

What is a judgment of possession?

A judgment of possession is the court order that names the heirs and puts them in legal possession of the property. It is the paper a title company usually looks for before it closes a sale of an inherited house. Once it is signed and recorded, the heirs generally can sign a sale.

There are two common paths to it. In a regular court succession, an attorney files, and a judge signs the judgment. For smaller estates, there is a small succession, where heirs sign a sworn affidavit. Louisiana raised the small succession limit to $200,000 on August 1, 2026, and the rule is in Code of Civil Procedure article 3421. It is generally used when there is no will, the title company decides whether it will accept the affidavit, and a lawyer can say whether your estate qualifies.

What if the succession is already in progress?

If a lawyer has already filed, the heirs can usually still plan a sale. The question is who has the power to sign. In some successions the court names an executor or administrator, called a succession representative, to handle the estate. In others, the heirs are put in possession and sign themselves.

When a succession representative wants to sell a house, the usual route is a private sale approved by the court. The representative files a petition describing the property, the price and the reasons for the sale. The representative may sign a conditional sales agreement first, and the court must then approve the sale. Ask the succession lawyer which route your case is on.

Private sale notices in the newspaper

If you see a notice in the paper, it is probably a notice of a proposed private sale. Louisiana law requires the notice to be published at least twice when the property is a house or land, in the parish where the succession is pending. The notice must also tell people that any opposition to the sale must be filed within seven days of the last publication. The law that sets this out is in the Code of Civil Procedure, articles 3281 and 3282.

You can read these notices for free on Louisiana Public Notice. They also run in the parish paper: The Inquisitor in Shreveport, the Bossier Press-Tribune, The Mansfield Enterprise and the Minden Press-Herald, depending on the parish. A notice names the property, the price and the person selling. Public notices are public, so heirs sometimes get calls or letters after one runs. You do not have to respond to anyone, and you can ask a lawyer first.

Sheriff's sale ads sometimes name "the unopened succession of" a person. That means the person has died, no succession has been opened, and the house is being sold in a foreclosure. See our page on facing a sheriff's sale.

What if there are several heirs?

A sale generally needs all of the heirs, or a court order that says who may sign. If one heir will not cooperate, cannot be found or lives far away, the sale can slow down. Start by putting the numbers on paper: what the house could sell for, what is owed and what each heir would receive. A lawyer can explain what a court can do when a co-owner will not agree. We cannot make an heir sign, and we do not pressure anyone.

What about unpaid property taxes and the mortgage?

Unpaid taxes and a mortgage do not go away when the owner dies. Taxes that are owed come out of the sale at the title company, and so does a mortgage. Louisiana changed how unpaid taxes lead to a sale on January 1, 2026, and our guide on property taxes in Louisiana explains that. If a mortgage payment is missed, tell the servicer the owner has died and ask in writing what it needs from the heirs.

What can we do for heirs?

We buy houses as they sit, and that includes the furniture and everything else inside. For an inherited house, there are three things we can do.

• Buy the house as it is, once the paperwork allows. You do not repair, clean or empty it.
• Wait for the succession. We can agree on a price and a plan in writing now, then close after the judgment of possession is recorded, or after the court approves a private sale.
• Work with the family's lawyer. The lawyer sees the offer, and the title company tells everyone what it needs.

We may pay cash, or in some cases take over payments, and neither is promised until we see the house and the paperwork. You pick the closing date. We charge heirs no fee. For the full picture, see our page for inherited houses. We buy in Shreveport, Bossier City, Mansfield and DeSoto Parish and Minden and Webster Parish.

Updated October 21, 2026